Spencer headed to circuit court

Stacy Langley

Published
8:00 pm EDT, Thursday, June 24, 2004

Anthony Michael Spencer, 24, appeared in Huron County District Court with his attorney Doug Lee for the examination. He faces a felony charge of assaulting a police officer while resisting arrest and two misdemeanor charges of operating a motor vehicle while license suspended and escaping from lawful custody.

Deputy Josh Powell testified Thursday that he was familiar with who Spencer was and thought Spencer was driving on a suspended license when he spotted him at an auto parts store in the city of Bad Axe.

Powell told the court he radioed Huron Central Dispatch to check Spencer's record through the LEIN (Law Enforcement Information Network) around 10 a.m. March 29. Dispatcher Norm Maeder reported back, telling Powell Spencer not only had a suspended driver's license, but he also had a warrant out for his arrest from Huron County for failing to comply with a court order.

Powell testified that Spencer came out of the auto parts store on the south side of the city and got into the vehicle and drove away before Maeder confirmed Spencer's license suspension.

When it was Lee's turn to question Powell, he went step by step with him on the witness stand to clear up how the traffic stop ended up on the north side of the city on Learman Road a half mile west of Crockard Road. Powell explained that traffic where he was parked when checking Spencer's record had kept him from following Spencer out of the auto parts parking lot, and that's when he lost track of Spencer for a short time until he reached the north end of Bad Axe when Spencer was spotted again.

When Spencer turned the vehicle down Learman Road Powell said he turned his lights on and pulled him over without a problem. When he got out of the patrol unit and approached Spencer, he said he asked him to get out of the vehicle, advising him that he was under arrest.

"I told the suspect (Spencer) to place his hands behind his back," Powell said. "When I told him this, he took off."

Powell testified that Spencer ran between the patrol car and the vehicle he was driving and toward the ditch. The 240-pound deputy said he tackled Spencer in the ditch along Learman Road and the two rolled down into the ditch. While in the ditch Powell said he was wrestling around with Spencer, lying on top of him trying to get control. At one point, he said he picked Spencer up off the ground and "threw him to the ground to regain control."

"I got him back down to the ground and was laying on top of him, he was trying to get away from underneath me," Powell said. "He said he was going to give up, and I told him to put his hands behind his back. He turned and hit me with his elbow."

Spencer broke free, and ran south through the field and into a wooded area. Powell said when he went to get up in the ditch he was unable to pursue Spencer because he injured both of his knees sometime during the tussle.

Two passersby stopped and assisted Powell out of the ditch and to his vehicle where he waited for backup. Law enforcement officials responded to the area where the incident took place, surrounding the field Spencer ran through, but even with the help of two tracking dogs, Spencer was not located that day.

Powell said he was taken to Huron Medical Center for treatment that day and is still off work as a road deputy due to the injuries he sustained.

When Powell stepped down from the stand Huron County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Stephen Allen asked Kraus to bind Spencer over to circuit court on the charges.

Kraus said in listening to Thursday's testimony he found there was sufficient evidence to bind the matter over to circuit court and scheduled Spencer to appear before Judge M. Richard Knoblock on July 12 for arraignment on the charges.

Spencer was on the run for nearly two months before police caught up with him in the city of Almont.

The felony charge of assaulting a police officer carries a four-year prison sentence and/or a $5,000 fine. The misdemeanor charge of driving while license suspended carries a possible penalty of 93 days in jail and/or a $500 fine. The second misdemeanor charge of escaping lawful custody carries a penalty of up to a year in jail or a $1,000 fine.

Spencer's bond was set at $30,000/10 percent. He remains lodged in the Huron County Jail.